My Preliminary Thoughts on Pope Leo XIV by Jesse Romero
People are quick to make rash judgements, detract and calumniate (cf. CCC 2478, 2479) the new Pope, its only day one, let’s take a deep breath and give him a chance to step into the office and start governing. Just a reminder, Satan is the accuser of the brethren (cf. Rev 12:10), let’s not do the work of Satan on day 1 of his Papacy. The majority of us do not know enough about him and it’s not fair to criticize him until we see what he’s all about! I am still very surprised that he was elected, and having the first American Pope is even more shocking! When he came out to the balcony after being pronounced our new Pope, he seemed like a nice, humble person, holding tears back while he spoke in three different languages, but did not speak in his native tongue, English, which was quite striking!
Although he is our first American Pope, he spent much of his clerical life abroad in Peru.
The name Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost is now the 267th Pope of the Catholic Church. He took the name of Pope Leo XIV, that’s a good sign but big shoes to fill. He was born in the USA and he is of French ancestry. I’m sure there will be many canonized saints in France who will be praying for him from heaven.
Here is the history of some of his namesakes. Pope Leo XIII was remembered for his encyclical ‘Rerum Novarum’ (1891) where he addresses the rights and conditions of workers. Leo XIII strengthened the Papacy internationally, supported Catholic education and intellectual Catholic thought. He improved Church relationships with countries, promoted Marian devotion, wrote on the Sacred Heart, wrote on the Holy Spirit and wrote and added the final prayer to the ‘rite of exorcism,’ known as ‘chapter 3’.
Pope Leo I, also known as Leo the Great, one of his most notable achievements was when he persuaded Attila the Hun to turn back from his invasion of Italy, enhancing Leo I's legacy as a protector of Rome. Pope Leo III crowned Charlemagne as Holy Roman Emperor in the year 800, solidifying the alliance between the papacy and European monarchy. Pope Leo X, a member of the powerful Medici family, reigned during the early years of the Protestant Reformation and is remembered for excommunicating Martin Luther. The use of "Leo" conveys strength and continuity, linking its bearers to the influential legacy of Leo I.
The traditional clothes Pope Leo XIV wore were the same traditional clothes that were worn by Pope Benedict XVI and Pope John Paul II, that’s a good sign. Pope Francis wore all white when he was elected Pope and did not wear the traditional Papal clothes.
POTUS already extended the olive branch to Pope Leo XIV, he posted: “Congratulations to Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost, who was just named Pope. It is such an honor to realize that he is the first American Pope. What excitement, and what a Great Honor for our Country. I look forward to meeting Pope Leo XIV. It will be a very meaningful moment!” - President Trump
XPOST https://x.com/dotconnectinga/status/1920535104809742359?s=61
Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost was not part of the hard modernist left, such as Tagle, Parolin, Hollerich, Turkson and Zuppi. We dodged that bullet, there were some bad hombres who were Papabile. It looks like they elected a centrist, the conclave did not elect a liberal or a conservative. Cardinal Prevost was not on the radar of being a modernist leftist Cardinal.
Here is something that separates himself from Pope Francis. Cardinal Prevost is an American citizen and a registered republican, he has voted in the primary elections and the general election, so he knows the politics of America. He has spoken against Trump & Vance’s policies, he may have done that just to please and curry favor with his boss Pope Francis. Rest assured, the legacy media is going to try to pit the first American Pope against President Trump, the media will try to drive a wedge between them, we can’t allow ourselves to be brainwashed by the legacy media. I have no doubt that behind closed doors these two americans are going to get along and will work with each other for the common good of the human race. Divine Providence has brought these two men together for such a time as this.
Cardinal Prevost has a degree in canon law, that’s very important because his predecessor ran rough shod over canon law, I hope Pope Leo XIV will respect canon law since he is a canon lawyer.
In Catholicism we believe people continue to have an ‘interior conversion’ as a result of the prayers and penance from the mystical body of Christ. We are all in motion, we are all in the process of conversion, working out our salvation with fear and trembling (cf. Philippians 2:12-13), we are all “being transformed into the same image (of God) from glory to glory” (cf. 2 Peter 3:17) and we are all tasked with the mandate to “grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ” (cf. 2 Peter 3:18). The Pope is a fellow traveler, I believe that the grace of the office as the successor of St Peter that he just received, can supply him with the fortitude and courage that he needs to govern like a faithful holy Vicar of Christ. The grace of the office of the Papacy can stir up the gift of God, which is in thee, by the laying on of hands at his consecration, may God give him fortitude, power, love and a sound mind (cf. 2 Tim 1:6-7).
Let’s remember what GOD says: love “bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things” (1 Cor 13:7 NAB). According to the Catechism of the Catholic Church, Christian hope is “the theological virtue by which we desire the kingdom of heaven and eternal life as our happiness, placing our trust in Christ’s promises and relying not on our own strength, but on the help of the grace of the Holy Spirit” (Paragraph 1817).
Despite any human failings, the Church is still the Bride of Christ. And if anything is standing at the end of time when Jesus comes back, it will be the Church, because it alone has been given the gift of indefectibility. This means that the Church is indestructible, it will last until the end of time. Nations will rise and fall. False religions will come and go. But the Church will last forever (cf. Baltimore Catechism#2, p.79).
The proof of its indestructibility is that Roman Emperors, Attila the Hun, Martin Luther, Napoleon, Lenin, Stalin, Hitler, Mao have tried to destroy the Church but could not. These individuals lie smoldering in graves and the Catholic Church lives on. Why, because the Catholic Church is sustained by a living Savior, JESUS CHRIST who conquered death and rose from a grave. The Vatican is the oldest continuous organization on earth, built literally on the tomb of St. Peter the apostle. Over the centuries it has witnessed the rise and fall of empires, philosophies, and scientific theories – and yet it still remains on the same spot, proclaiming the same gospel. Catholics believe that the Holy Spirit has been with the Catholic Church uninterrupted and perpetually since 33 A.D. and therefore we still have and will always have until the end of time, the One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Church. Christendom means Christ Kingdom, that is the Church. The Catholic Church has been under the same management for over 2,000 years, his name is JESUS CHRIST the Son of GOD.
by Jesse Romero <><